> This has been building for at least 5 years, but it's obvious now that the West needs to start acting. We didn't win the cold war by pretending it wasn't going on and China has certain advantages that we don't have. We have to coordinate on two separate levels that they do not. First, at the state level, where the game theory goes against us because it's typically rival factions (Democrats vs Republicans) and second at the alliance level where we need to coordinate between only semi-aligned nations.

Don't forget Western business interests, which are politically powerful and will often succeed at blocking any action that interferes with their short-term profits. Their loyalty is to their shareholders, and they'll sell everyone else out for them. I actually see this as the biggest problem preventing the West from taking effective action.

The PRC doesn't have this problem, because its businesses are clearly subordinate to its political apparatus (e.g. they've been making examples out of very large and successful companies lately).